My ten year old Siberian Husky has been having nose bleeds from his right nostril for a few weeks off and on. We took him in to the vet at the beginning and the ex-rays didn't reveal anything suspicious, and the blood work didn't show an elevation suggesting an infection, and we got antibiotics.

We thought they were slowly getting better. Well, a week later he had a bad bleed. The were some pools of blood on the carpet, splattering all over the flood and wall, and mixed in were several blood clots. I rushed him to the vet, and they did another ex-ray and blood work, nothing. But, our vet gave us a different antibiotic, and a steroid for inflammation. She thought he possibly sniffed something up and it got stuck in his nose. We went 11 days, and this Thursday he had two small nose bleeds.

Our vet is at a loss. He has no other obvious systems, he’s eating normally, happy, thrilled when someone comes over to visit, and still a great temperament with our kids.

I just wanted to post an update on our pup. I was convinced that my boy had sniffed up some rabbit poop he’s been obsessing about in our backyard, but it still bothered me that his nose was still dripping very small amounts of blood. I called my vet again, and she suggested taking him to the referral center in the next town.
This week they did a 3-D x-ray (this just x-rays the upper part of his mouth), a nose flush (to help remove any possible foreign bodies), and a Rhinoscopy with a biopsy. Well, today we got the horrible gut wrenching news, cancer. I will try to spell the name of the cancer, adenosqamous carcinoma.
Has anyone else had a dog with this cancer? I want to know all I can about this monster, and has anyone beaten this after it has past the beginning stages?

I have had a cat who had sinus cancer. Have you talked to your vet about the prognosis? Sadly he did not survive it, think it started in his kidneys though so he had other problems before the sinus cancer.

The vet that did the probe said that he’s got about three months untreated, and with radiation we would have about 8 months. There would be a great chance with where the tumor is located in the nose that the radiation would cause a type of sunburn on the roof of his mouth, and he could then not want to eat from the pain, and end up with a feeding tube during this.
If that wasn’t bad enough we would have to travel over 200 miles each way to get to the radiation. My Yukon gets beyond stressed traveling(, he can barely make it the fifteen minutes to the referral center). If we opted to leave him there for the duration of the treatment to avoid the daily stress, he might not make it, he has major separation issues from me. He chewed through a metal kennel when we tried to board him, and broke off all his canines, and after his biopsy he chewed off his IV. He’s gonna lose no matter what we do.

I'm sorry you're having to go through this, puppypwr. These decisions are always heartwrenching.

You have to look at quality of life, not just quantity. Sometimes it just comes down to making your buddy as comfortable as possible. It just doesn't feel fair, though... :sad:

We also had a dog with nasal cancer. She was an indomitable springer spaniel--a lovable, feisty girl. There was a vague mass spotted on an xray in a spot inconvenient for removal or even biopsy, so we never did get a definite diagnosis. Gradually, the nose bleeds got more frequent and Priscilla eventually succumbed quickly to a massive bleed out when the tumor evidently burst.

...it sounds so grim. But the good news is that it didn't seem to cause her pain. She passed very peacefully--on her own terms, under her favorite bushes, while we were waiting for the vet to make the house call to have her put to sleep. Because we had been told that she wouldn't bleed out through the nose, it was traumatic for us--but for Priscilla, it seemed quite easy and painless.

Whatever you decide to do for treatment, loving up Yukon is always the best option. Enjoy your time together and build sweet memories. May you have many happy months left together!

__________________
"We are--each of us--dying; it's how we live in the meantime that makes the difference."

"It's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived!"

"Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

I'm so sorry to hear about your dog having nasal cancer. My dog of 14 yrs passed away from this and it was extremely heartbreaking and devestating. He got so bad that both nostrils were clogged and I had to keep his mouth open by holding his jowles out so he could breathe. to add to this - he also had congestive heart disease and diabetes. You talk about a rough ride fro this little fella- but we were there for him all the way and he never gave up- all the way to the end. he was a brave little trooper and died in my arms.

PLEASE...if anyone here has an animal who bleeds from his/ her nose- please go directly to the vet and have them check for nasal cancer- our vet told us it was a peice of acorn that he had sniffed - boy was he wrong- and it cost my baby his life. Do not take the word of your vet- when my dog first was having diabetic problems- we took him to our vet and he told us it was seizures- thank goodness I had a bad feeling and went for a second opinion- it did come out as diabetes and it only took a 29 cent pee-strip to prove it.

always get second opionions as though you were seeing yoru own doctor. It may be a matter of life or death for your family member.

My dog was a cocker spaniel and he was my little angel.

I hope you find the strength to carry on after your baby crosses the rainbow bridge.

I just wanted to send an update.
Our Pup's condition had slowly gotten worse, and his nose was dripping blood everyday. The weekend before last his breathing had started to become heavier, and this past Wednesday he had a bad bleed.
We came to the hard decision that we just could not put him through this anymore. That evening we took him to the vet, and held him tight until after he took his last breath.

Nose cancer is a very cruel and fast cancer. If your puppy has any unexplained nose bleeds I urge you to have a 3D x-ray done, they are much better for seeing in the nose, and a Rhinoscopy with a biopsy. This might not give you the results you want, but it might give your puppy a chance.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UNAWAKENED"
He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.
-Unknown

Hi puppypwr, i just had to respond to you. i no exactly what your going through. I had a 4 yr. old female rottie, one day her nose started to bleed, then it went away for about a month. then it came back so my husband took her to the vet, and he went in looking for a foxtail or foreign object, which nothing was to be found, he put some kind of medicine in her nose, and the bleeding stopped for a couple of weeks. then it returned and i called the vet and he told us she would have to go in for a biopsy through the nose. so we went to the specialist and that day that we took her in she was bleeding so bad, could not get the nose bleed to stop at all. the dr. did the biopsy 2 days later we got the bad news that she had squamous carcinoma. we where devasted, and so upset. we where sent to the cancer dr. and where told the exact samething as you where told. but she was having such a problem breathing and sleeping. we put her on the pills for pain from cancer but that did not stop the bleeding. about a month after we could not take it anymore. she was suffering you could see it in her beautiful face. we had to let her go back home, and be free of pain and suffering. this happened 3 yrs. ago this past oct. the pain of course still hurts. me and my husband still talk about our little girl.her name was byonka. i still have her mom and brother. just had to let you no i understand what your going through. its very tuff. but i do no she is waiting for me on the other side and free of any pain and suffering. you take care.

Hi all, I have been searching the internet for answers to my dogs problem. When I read this thread I started to cry. I think my dog has the same problem, but by the sounds of what you are all describing, I fear the worse for my poor dog.
She is a 12yr old Cross Yorkie/Maltese.
She started sneezing a lot every morning about 6-8months ago,no blood just a lot of sneezing.
About 3-4 months ago I came home to a blood bath, it looked as though my 2 dogs had torn each other apart. Blood on the walls, furniture splatters etc just as you all described. I couldnt figure out where it came from until a month later when I saw her sneeze up blood, splattering it all over. I called the vet and they said it was probably a reaction to a nasal vacine that she had recieved recently.
From then it would happend periodically, the bleeding would start and then stop. this was alarming but according to my vet was nothing to worry about.
This last weekend was the worse. I came home to the biggest blood bath you can imagine, on the walls, bed, couch and all over the dog. I immedidately called my vet and he said just put an icepack and bring her in on monday. Well it happened again that evening and 2 more times before monday. then again on monday morning before I took her to the vet.
The vet did the blood tests and all was normal except for the high calcium count which I knew about from previous tests.
He gave her a vitamin K shot and said it should help the clotting. well it didn't, that evening the same thing,and each time it would a worse spill and take longer to stop.
Today I came in to find my bed looking like someone had given birth on it. There was so much blood. I called the vet and he has scheduled a nasal scope for tomorow, its still bleeding on and off now. I asked him if she could bleed out from the nose, and he said no. From the quantity of blood that comes out I tend to disagree.
I think she will be ok for the evening I hope.
However from reading all your posts, I am feeling very dispondent about her chances? Is it allways cancer?
Has anyone here been thru this condition and actually managed to save thier dog?
I suppose I am hoping that I am that one case that gets to keep his dog?

Its breaking my heart to read how you all had to stand by and watch your beloved pet pass. Each time I get to the part where puppypwr states "That evening we took him to the vet, and held him tight until after he took his last breath.
" I just cant read on, I have to stand up and walk away or I will just cry all night. I'm a grown man and I feel like I am loosing my child!

I just hope and pray that she will not bleed any more tonite and that the scope tomorow morning will be against all odds and tell me that there is just a bug stuck up there.

thanks for listening and if you have any advice I would greatly appreciate it. especially tips on how to stop the bleeding.

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. I cannot express enough how much I appreciate this group.
I have posted an update on another thread, not sure if you guys have seen it, It was called "she has nose bleed like pupyvr" , I thought I was on the wrong thread, excuse me for being a newbie too, dont really know the site that well yet either.

Anyway, today shes actually doing really well.
It seems somehow the scope help stop the bleeding for now at least.

As soon as I get the results I will send out notification. I really want other people to learn about these things. I would also like to find out exactly how a dog actually gets these kinds of sicknesses? I had never heard of things like this till I have to deal with it.

Did anyone get an explaination from thier vet, where it came from? is it genetic? or something they could have eaten? or perhaps lead in thier toys?

Just searching for answers, because I cannot imagine what our pets have done to deserve being sick this way?

Puppypwr, did you ever get another dog? I think this one will be my last, I can't deal with the heart ache, and cannot imagine trying to replace her if she dies. I do have one other dog, but I am just looking after it for my mom while she is away for a year, but other than that I just dont want to have the heartache of lossing another pet.

KiChien,
No we have not gotten another dog yet. Right now we still have one of our cats (her sister died last year just before Yukon), and our 12 year-old husky Tundra. He has liver cancer, so we are hoping to have as much time with him as possible. As for our other cat, she will be fifteen this year, so I know our time will be limited with her as well.
I know some people must think that with all the death that will be in our family that we would be completely done with animals. It is a devastating loss, and with two small children in our house why would we even think it.
But KiChien, I can't imagine not having our house without a dog or cat. It seems like something is missing without our Yukon and Sweetpea. Our children are also learning so much with our animals, unconditional love, patience, gratitute, and so much more.
Fifteen years ago I loss my childhood cat to old age, and it was so hard. I didn't want another cat to replace her, she was amazing, perfect. The next day my husband went to the animal shelter, and asked me to just look at the one of the two kittens there. I just went to look for him, and ended up in love with both.
We do plan on getting another dog when the vet bills for Yukon are paid for, not to replace our boy, but to Honor him, and share our love for another dog who will need it as much as he did.
I hope this helps a little, and spoil your girl as much as your can.
Take care,
Yukon's Mom

I am just posting a duplicate here this here for record purposes, and to let Puppypwr know directly. Thanks for your posts puppypwr, unfortunately our stories seem to be almost identical so far. I just hope mine is a little happier for a little longer.......
....................................
Well I finally got the results last week, and it was not what I wanted to hear at all. I really hoped she could be that one in a million that was just a blockage.
Its Cancer "adenosqamous carcinoma" exactly the same as puppypwr had! I was really devasted when I was told by my vet, even though I was preparing myself for it, it was still a shock.
The only option for treatment is radiation and to quote "puppypwr"

"he’s got about three months untreated, and with radiation we would have about 8 months. There would be a great chance with where the tumor is located in the nose that the radiation would cause a type of sunburn on the roof of his mouth, and he could then not want to eat from the pain, and end up with a feeding tube during this.
If that wasn’t bad enough we would have to travel over 200 miles each way to get to the radiation."

I got the same story as she did. Its like I read this story by her and ended up living it.
Anyway the "good news" if you can call it that, is that she is not bleeding for now, nor since the rhinoscopy. Only a tiny little bit of blood came out once, when she sneezed, but that was it. and its been almost 2 weeks now.

I am not sure if its the drugs I have her on now or a higher power, but its helping for now. She's on Painkillers 2x per day "tramadol" and "metacam" for the inflamation. both are non steroidal, and the vet says they could be helping.
I am just happy that she is stable for now and pray that she can last more than just a few months. Other than knowing what is looming over her, she is 100% normal, eating, chasing other dogs, barking etc. I actually had to give her a sedative for fear of her getting overly excited and starting the bleeding up again.

Other than that I am just enjoying the time with her for now, and treating every meal as though it was her last. I have taken her off, all artificial treats, and only giving organic and natural treats for fear that other things may inhibit recovery.

And thats about it for now. I will give an update now and them just to let you all know how she's doing, and I would like to thank everyone again for their support.

I've been reading all of the posts and my 9 yr old golden Hunter is going through the same thing, he has been getting nose bleeds for the past week now and last night was a really bad one. He was already diagnosed with stomach and liver cancer and I'm guessing it's now in his nose. he also lost his vision the other day and started walking into walls. I am having an extremly hard time deciding what to do. He lays around all day and only gets up to eat, everyone I've talked to said I would know when its time but I don't. I feel like he still has life in him and he is still wagging his tail when you call him and ask him if he wants a treat. but at the same time I don't want to be in pain. is there anyone who went through is also that could give me some advise?

As you have seen by these posts, we have all been thru some similar things. When I first read the nose bleed post by pupppwr I could see the exact same symptoms in my dog.
I think you need to get the vet to look inside his nose to see if there is something up there. If it is bleeding from one side only, then definately it could be a similar case. I have been told that this cancer is more common in the larger breeds.
I would not want my dog to be in any pain whatsoever. I also would not want to put her down if she still could get over it and have a little longer to live.
I had the Rhinoscopy done and a biopsy of what was there, it cost about $1k. But I think having that done actually helped her a little, because since then she has not had a nose bleed, namely because I have her on an anti-inflamatory and painkillers every day. SOmehow I think this is helping.

Prior to the Nose bleed issue I was told that she had a tumour in her parathyroid, and spent $5K on that operation to find absolutely nothing there.
The nose bleeds then started after that operation and progressivley became worse as you no doubt have read the other posts here.

If this is a similar pattern with you, i highly reccomend going for the second opinion and see if its the nose.

PS, my dog is also loosing her sight, but i think thats due to cattaracs, don't know if its related to the cancer.

Just wanted to thank evryone for these posts. It helped with Hunter when the time came last week to put him down ( I am anskygyrl's mom) Last Tuesday, he began vomiting blood and you could see was in pain. We had a 10 year old golden, Lucy, who also went through liver cancer 3 years ago. She did not have the nosebleeds, but had fluid around her heart. Our little 2 year old golden, Laci, is missing Hunter and keeps looking for him everywhere. I am afraid that maybe it was the Nutro diet that brought this on? Lucy and Hunter were not related, yet suffered almost identical disease. I want to do all I can to be sure that this does not happen to her.
Denise..
Mom to Laci and 4 people kids

Quote:

Originally Posted by anskygyrl

Hi everyone,

I've been reading all of the posts and my 9 yr old golden Hunter is going through the same thing, he has been getting nose bleeds for the past week now and last night was a really bad one. He was already diagnosed with stomach and liver cancer and I'm guessing it's now in his nose. he also lost his vision the other day and started walking into walls. I am having an extremly hard time deciding what to do. He lays around all day and only gets up to eat, everyone I've talked to said I would know when its time but I don't. I feel like he still has life in him and he is still wagging his tail when you call him and ask him if he wants a treat. but at the same time I don't want to be in pain. is there anyone who went through is also that could give me some advise?

Hi everyone, my Vizsla has a malignant tumor that started in her mouth and has progressed to her nose. The cancer is eating away at her nose bone and, similar to the other posts, my dog started out sneezing a lot and today she sneezed out a good amount of blood.

After reading the posts, it seems it's only going to get dramatically worse from here. My fear is being selfish. I don't want to keep her here longer just so I can have her with me when it might be better to put her to rest, but I also don't want to put her to sleep when she's still eating and drinking and wagging her tail.

I think the cancer is also affecting her hearing, but she seems to still see fine. She's 13 years old, but besides the tumor, she's in great shape.

I would hate to come home to pools of blood and/or witness her bleeding from the nostril. Can someone tell me how quickly to expect the symptoms to worsen or give me advice on how long it too long to wait until it's time?

I'm sorry your introduction to the board is under such sad circumstances, HunNica.

Unfortunately, all dogs and all cancers progress differently so it's hard to make predictions. However, with our Priscilla, the nose bleeds became gradually more frequent and more severe. We knew we were nearing the end the day she died--we'd made an appointment that evening to have her put to sleep. Priscilla just took matter into her own paws...

Priscilla's cancer never spread out of the nasal passages, though, as is the case in your dog, so I'm not sure if you'll see the same pattern or not.

Follow your heart and take it day by day. When waiting will give you time, but bring your girl no joy, you'll know it's time. It's a hard decision to make, but whatever you decide and whenever you decide it, if you make your decision out of love, your Vizsla will never fault you for it.

Good luck, HunNica. Most of the members here can relate to what you're going through--the board is very supportive. Please keep us posted on how things go. We're here if you need to talk or rant or just need a hug.

__________________
"We are--each of us--dying; it's how we live in the meantime that makes the difference."

"It's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived!"

"Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

I just wanted to thank everyone who has posted to this thread. In some way you have shared a bit about you and your special friend that helps others. After reading, I find I am too watching my 13 year old dachshund begin to be hard of hearing, and now is experiencing nose bleeds.

I wanted to give an update on my little baby. I will keep this brief, as It makes me cry everytime that I think of her.
I gave her a bath 2 sunday's ago, thinking that she needed a good haircut and bath now that she was a little stable. While I was doing it I thought to myself, wow at least she

will be nice a clean if she had to pass sometime. And Loan behold, 3 hrs later I had a nose bleed on my hands very short one so not too bad. it was not due to the bath as

there was no water near the nose.
Anyway what happened next was unexpected. Her nose and upper eyes got swollen to the point that she looked like a different dog. I rushed her to my vet first thing in the

morning, and was told it could be a spider bite or its the tumour moving up into the eye area. He was concerned with the Biopsy hole scar more than the swelling, and said if

the swelling goes down(after a major shot of anti-inflamatory that he gave) she should be fine.
The swelling did subside above the eye area, and 50% over the nose, giving me hope that she would be fine.
On thursday last week she started to bleed from the biopsy hole on her nose bridge. Not too much blood but enough to alarm me. I stayed up all night and morning, on and off

with her, hearing some gasps for air. but nothing too bad other than trickle of blood from the top.
On friday morning she sneezed a little more blood, the bridge wound had clotted some, but when I looked into her eyes I saw pain and knew I had to make a decision.
I called my vet and he said, If I keep her around its a matter of days as the tumour is now trying to push thru the upper caverns and out. If I hang onto her it may explode and

more suffering would come. And If i keep her going to wait something worse to come, it would selfish.
...I made the decision then and there, that I had to save her the pain to come. It was the hardest decision I have ever made in my life. Grappling with the fact that when you

looked passed the bridge of her nose at the wagging tail, and the sprinting!! on the beach the same day, from this baby, to have her put down? I am full of guilt and remorse

right now, even though i know I saved her the pain. Nothing could have prepared me for this feeling. Not even the death of my father and brother felt this way. She was my

companion and friend for 12yrs, she never asked for anything but food, walks, love and place to sleep. And she gave me unconditional love and attention for this cheap price.
I know it was the right decision, but it still hurts. Maybe by taking her early, I have now taken the pain of her tumor into my heart, which is ok.

Anyway, I said this wouldnt be long but here it is. I will try to post a more possitive note later on, and forgive me for letting loose, Its the only way I can try feel

better.
I am 90% sure I did the best thing and 10% guilty now. and 120% sad.

For HunNica,
All I can say is that no matter what you do, no matter what you hear, you will know in your heart the right time. THe thing is if your pet is in pain and you know for a fact

that there is more to come for sure, then you will see it by looking into your pets eyes.

Best Regards to All

In memorium for Chien Chien taken from my world on 29 February 2008 at 5:15pm.